Prince Harry's US visa records lawsuit set for first court hearing under Trump's watch

1. Prince Harry's US visa records lawsuit set for first court hearing under Trump's watch

Prince Harry's US visa records lawsuit set for first court hearing under Trump's watch ByTuhin Das Mahapatra Jan 29, 2025 02:17 AM IST Share Via Copy Link Prince Harry's visa records lawsuit set for hearing as Heritage Foundation questions his drug use disclosure.

A lawsuit seeking to make Prince Harry's confidential visa records public is set for its first court hearing since Donald Trump 2.0. The Heritage Foundation, an American think tank, has reopened its case to have the Duke of Sussex's immigration documents released.

Court to hear case on Prince Harry's visa records as Trump suggests possible deportation over drug use. (Photo by Ben Stansall / AFP)(AFP)

The group has raised questions about how Harry was able to enter the U.S. in 2020 with his wife, Meghan Markle, despite admitting in his 2023 memoir Spare to using cocaine, marijuana, and psychedelic mushrooms.

The Duke admitted that cocaine “didn’t do anything for me” but described marijuana as being helpful.

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The Heritage Foundation has alleged that Harry either misrepresented his drug use on his visa application or received preferential treatment from the Biden administration.

Judge Carl J. Nichols has now ordered lawyers representing both the Heritage Foundation and Harry to meet at a federal court in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday, February 5, per Newsweek.

Under U.S. immigration law, visa applicants must disclose any history of drug use. Providing false information on visa forms can lead to deportation. The Heritage Foundation aims to examine Harry’s immigration records to determine what he disclosed about his drug use.

Former President Donald Trump has also said that Harry could face deportation if it is proven he lied on his visa application. “I wouldn’t protect him… That’s unforgivable. He would be on his own if it was down to me,” Trump said to the Sunday Express at the time.

Notably, Nile Gardiner, director of Heritage’s Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom, pressed Donald Trump to release Harry's documents. “I’ll be urging the president to release Prince Harry’s immigration records, and the president does have that legal authority to do that,” he told the New York Post.

“Donald Trump is ushering in a new era of strict border control enforcement, and you know, Prince Harry should be held fully to account as he has admitted to extensive illegal drug use. My firm expectation is that action will be taken.”

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“We’ll have to see if they know something about the drugs, and if he lied, they’ll have to take appropriate action,” Trump told GB News during an interview with Nigel Farage.

Notably, earlier, the Heritage Foundation filed a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security after their Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to obtain Harry’s visa records was denied. Judge Nichols ruled out that “the public does not have a strong interest in disclosure of the duke's immigration records.”